Talking Animals

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Max Chesnes–the award-winning environment reporter for The Tampa Bay Times, who appeared on “Talking Animals” in January, discussing some wildlife-related Times stories he’d recently written—returned to the show for a comparable conversation about some of his latest articles. Chesnes, whose b…

David Ebert–the founder of Weeping Elephant Project, which, according to its website, “focuses on the awfulness of the use of captive elephants for zoos, circuses and other forms of supposed entertainment,” but has great ambitions for rectifying the plight of these pachyderms—recalls his 33-y…

Gretchen Primack–the poet, teacher, and animal activist who first appeared on “Talking Animals” a dozen years ago, discussing her animal-focused collection of poetry, Kind—catches me up on her undertakings in recent years, including the prison education program she’d decided to step away from…

Elizabeth Olson–who lives in Palm Harbor, and is the founder of not one, but two animal organizations, with intersecting missions—recalls even as a toddler, making a beeline for any animal she’d see. Over the ensuing years, her passion for animals has remained unwavering, but she’s also clear…

Ron King, co-founder of Oscar’s Place—a California-based nonprofit which rescues, rehabilitates, and rehomes donkeys—discusses not being an animal fan earlier in his life, but having transformed into a veritable donkey zealot, a point underscored by King nuzzling a pair of donkeys: 5-day-old Sherlo…

Marc Bekoff–professor emeritus of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at the University of Colorado, Boulder, who’s written or co-written more than 30 books; his latest, “Love in Their Hearts: A Celebration of Animal Emotions and a Guide to Compassionate Action,” features a foreword by the late …

As we’ve done 17 times before—spanning five-plus years–today’s program involved setting aside the usual “Talking Animals” format in order to present the show-length feature, “Ask The Trainer.”  In each session of ATT, listeners are invited to call or email (or text) questions about their dogs or ca…

Laurie Sumiye–the artist-filmmaker who directed the striking documentary “A Paradise Lost,” a live action/animation hybrid telling the story of the Palila, a small, yellow bird, found only on the Mauna Kea volcano in Hawaii, and for whom a landmark lawsuit was filed in 1978 to prevent its ext…

Dr. Edie Dopking–founder of Quantum Leap Farm, an Odessa, FL-based facility that, for 25 years, has offered an array of equestrian therapy programs, addressing a wide range of conditions, serving constituents who “range from age 2 to 92”—describes her lifelong passion for horses, growing up i…